Dr. Max Herman Included as Subject Expert in Article on Paterson's Peru Square

JERSEY CITY, N.J. | Max Herman, New Jersey City University (NJCU) Associate Professor of Sociology & Anthropology, and an expert on urban sociology and social conflict, is included as a subject expert in a Hispanic Heritage Month article entitled "An unexpected slice of Peru is hidden here in N.J. and you’ve got to visit".

The October 14, 2023 article in NJ.com and the Star Ledger, was published by NJ Advance Media writer Daysi Calavia-Robertson and tells the story of Paterson, N.J.'s "Peru Square" — the area behind Mill, Market, Main, and Cianci streets which was officially designated in 2016.

Professor Herman says areas like Peru Square have a certain vibrance and pull to them he attributes to people like Paterson Deputy Mayor Maria del Pilar Rivas, and the many others, who pour into them.

These ethnic enclaves, he explains, usually thrive because they’re entrepreneurial and money tends to circulate throughout and within them. “And what that does is create an opportunity for people not just to live amongst their own people, but to work amongst their own people and form what’s largely a self-contained community."

Herman, the chair of NJCU's Sociology and Anthropology Department, has frequently been cited as a faculty expert by the media. In October 2021, he was one of several experts quoted in a nationally syndicated story from the USA Today network of papers discussing the January 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection, those arrested for their involvement and their motivation — particularly people of color. Dr. Herman has been quoted in other stories in recent years, including a June 2020 article on civil unrest in Fort Myers, Fla.

Media seeking an NJCU faculty or staff member as a subject expert are encouraged to contact communications@NJCU.edu for assistance and guidance.

About NJCU:
New Jersey City University is an institution of higher learning dedicated to the development of our students, our city, our communities, and our state. We are a game-changing force for our students and have been recognized as one of the top colleges in the nation improving their upward economic mobility. Whether enrolled in one of our undergraduate, graduate, or doctoral programs at our three locations, NJCU students have access to an affordable, diverse environment, and an exceptionally supportive faculty. This prepares them to go on to become the next generation of workers and leaders who improve their communities and the State of New Jersey.

—www.NJCU.edu—

Contact:
Ira Thor, Associate Vice President for University Communications (interim) | ithor@njcu.edu | 201-200-3301

Photo Credit: Julian Leshay | For NJ Advance Media
Deputy Mayor Maria del Pilar Rivas poses for a photograph underneath a Peru Square sign in Paterson on Wednesday, October 11, 2023